When our solar system was in its infancy 4.5 billion years ago, a swarm of protoplanets swirled around the sun—some of which coalesced into larger and larger masses, while others were blasted to smithereens in a demolition derby of planetary proportions.

The maser (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), the older microwave frequency sibling of the laser, was invented in 1954. However unlike lasers, which have become widespread, masers are much less widely used because in order to function they must be cooled to temperatures close to absolute zero (-273°C).